Austin police officer shot during ‘altercation’ near high school; authorities searching for suspect

An Austin ISD police officer was shot and sustained non-life-threatening injuries after an “altercation in the parking lot” of a high school on Tuesday morning.

Investigators are searching for a suspect who witnesses described as “a bald male, between 30 and 40 years old, wearing a beige sweater and pants,” according to the Austin American-Statesman.

Just after 11 a.m., Austin ISD posted on Twitter that Northeast Early College High School was “in lockdown due to shots heard in the area. Police are responding. Please do not come to campus.”

Around 11:45 a.m., the school district posted an update that the campus was “safe” but still in lockdown.

They wrote that an Austin ISD police officer “sustained injuries during an altercation in the parking lot.”

The Statesman reported that the officer told investigators that he was ambushed by an assailant, according to scanner traffic.

The school is located in northeast Austin, off Highway 290 — just east of Interstate 35 and south of Highway 183.

Governor Greg Abbott issued a statement Tuesday afternoon saying that “our hearts are with the family and loved ones” of the officer.

“Our ISD police officers play a critical role in keeping Texas students and school faculty safe. The State of Texas is offering all available resources to local law enforcement partners who are working to ensure this dangerous criminal is caught and brought to justice,” Abbott wrote in the statement.